Walls in Spain: Leucate and more

For a place that supposedly has little rain, Barcelona has been inundated with showers for the last couple of months! This past weekend was no different as the weather called for rain so on Thursday evening, Bucky and I made plans to get out of town. Of course, top on my list was to go to "vide greniers" so I found a few that were going on in the Pyrenees-Orientales department of France which is relatively close by. We then looked around for a place to stay that would be enjoyable and accept dogs and found a little boutique hotel called Hotel 19-21 in what seemed to be a cute town, Leucate.

We headed that way on Saturday morning. We were excited for a road trip because we just received our toll pass in the mail and wanted to try it out. I ordered the toll pass so that we could go through tolls automatically and then pay for them via our checking account instead of stopping and paying at each one. We had a similar thing when we lived in France and we really felt local when we got it so we were looking forward to feeling the same way here! Of course we were nervous going through the first toll, but it opened quickly and we celebrated together in the car!

Our drive to Leucate was rainy but we made it there safely. The hotel was so quaint and cool - modern, but very french and the people who run it could not have been nicer. They were so welcoming and definitely dog people so we felt comfortable having India. They recommended we get lunch at the place across the street from them and it was such a memorable meal! It is a bookstore that also serves food - the menu is light, just like the food (think tartines and salad), but it was just what we wanted. Plus, they allowed India to join us!

Leucate is located on a peninsula between the Mediterranean Sea and a huge lagoon called the Etang de Leucate. We spent the afternoon driving to the other towns along the peninsula since it was still raining and going to the beach was not an option. It is apparent that the area is a big wind-surfing place and a destination for families during the summer. The village of Leucate is very quaint, with small streets, cobblestones and little businesses. We had dinner at a pizza place, Dolce Farniente, that only has six tables and has won some pizza awards in France. The people who ran the restaurant were lovely and even asked me to talk to someone who was calling to order pizza and didn't speak French but spoke English. I earned an extra limoncello for my services!

On Sunday, we headed out to rummage through treasures at vide greniers. Luckily, the sun was shining! Our first stop was in Le Barcares where we picked up a little wine pitcher and an old, small patio chair. Then we headed to Sainte-Mairie la Mer where the vide grenier was on the beach which was spectacular. We enjoyed wandering around, but didn't purchase any treasures. Our next stop was at a vide grenier outside of Perpignan which is a big city. The vide grenier didn't have much to offer, but I did end up buying a couple of old shoe forms that were cool. We were really going for it so we stopped at a fourth vide grenier in the town of Elne. The streets were lined with vendors and we ended up buying a postcard rack so we can display pictures in our apartment in Barcelona. Finally, we headed to Collioure, a seaside town we have visited in the past for a brocante (which is like a vide grenier but only has antiques) and lunch. It was a successful day and getaway all around!

This was our first trip with our new toll pass which was very exciting! The pass is in the upper left hand corner of the pic! Meanwhile, Bucky is concentrating on the road!

After we checked into the hotel in Leucate, we went across the street to have lunch at "Entrez Libres," a sweet restaurant that is also a book store! Of course, we started with rose and Perrier.